--- description: At least 37 people have been killed after two female suicide bombers blew themselves up on Moscow Metro trains in the Monday morning rush hour title: Suicide Bombings Strike Moscow Metro image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [World](/section/world/) * [LightBox](/tag/time-section-lightbox/) # Suicide Bombings Strike Moscow Metro by [TIME](/author/time/) Mar 29, 2010 4:00 AM CUT by [TIME](/author/time/) Mar 29, 2010 4:00 AM CUT At least 37 people have been killed after two female suicide bombers blew themselves up on Moscow Metro trains in the Monday morning rush hour ### On the Move  Russian riot police run near the Lubyanka metro station in Moscow on March 29, 2010 after two explosions during the early morning rush hour in metro stations killed dozens of people. Russian intelligence said it was likely a group from the North Caucasus was responsible and that two women carried out the attack. AFP / Getty Images ### Returning to Normality  People start taking the subway some hours after the suicide bombings. These co-ordinated attacks were the deadliest in Moscow since February 2004, when at least 39 people were killed by a bomb on a packed metro train as it approached Paveletskaya station. Six months later, a suicide bomber blew herself up outside Rizhskaya station, killing 10 people. Both attacks were blamed on Chechen rebels. In November 2009, the Caucasian Mujahadeen said it carried out a bomb attack that killed 26 people on board an express train traveling from Moscow to Russia's second city of St Petersburg. Konstantin Zavrazhin / Getty Images ### Drawing the Line  Police stand next to a map of the Moscow metro transport system. 24 people died in the first blast at around 8.00am local time as a train stood at the central Lubyanka station, beneath the offices of the FSB (Federal Security Services) intelligence agency. Roughly 40 minutes later, a second explosion ripped through a train at Park Kultury, leaving another 13 dead. Officials suspect that the first attack was intended as a message to the security services, which have led the crackdown on Islamic extremism in Chechnya and other parts of the Caucasus region in southern Russia. STR / AFP / Getty Images ### Culture Clash  Ambulances are parked near one of the entrances to the Park Kultury (Park of Culture) subway station. Better known as the Metro, Moscow's subway system is one of the world's most extensive and well-managed, carrying as many as 10 million people a day. Misha Japaridze / AP ### Suppressing Terror  Russian emergency workers carry a victim's body out of the Lubyanka metro station. At a meeting with senior officials, President Dmitry Medvedev vowed to uphold the "policy of suppressing terror and the fight against terrorism. We will continue operations against terrorists without compromises and to the end," he said. AFP / Getty Images ### Downward Spiral  Emeregency workers enter a pedestrian underpass to get to Lubyanka's metro station. While no group has yet said it carried out the attacks, previous suicide bombings in the capital have been carried out by or blamed on Islamist rebels fighting for independence in Chechnya. Last month, Chechen rebel leader Doku Umarov said "the zone of military operations will be extended to the territory of Russia ... the war is coming to their cities." Alexey Szaonov / AFP / Getty Images ### Holding On  Passengers are seen in Moscow's subway a few hours after the bomb blasts. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin cut short a trip to Siberia, returning immediately to Moscow to coordinate the federal response. Putin promised that "the terrorists will be destroyed." Konstantin Zavrazhin / Getty Images ### Taking a Breather  Russian firefighters in front of the Park Kultury metro station. Parts of the Metro system were closed down as a precaution, with 700 interior ministry troops deployed on the streets. Konstantin Zavrazhin / Getty Images ### Shock to the System  A women stands in front of the Park Kultury metro station entrance. Members of the public were understandably frightened by the chaos of Monday morning's events. "The whole city is a mess, people are calling each other, the operators can't cope with such a huge number of calls at a time," a woman named Olga told the BBC. "Those who witnessed the tragedy can't get over the shock." Konstantin Zavrazhin / Getty Images ### Standing Firm  Russian police guard Park Kultury's metro station. President Barack Obama condemned the "outrageous acts" and said the American people stood united with the people of Russia in opposition to violent extremism. 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